Flying insects, for example, various social wasps, including paper wasps, hornets, and yellow jackets, can be a significant nuisance and a potential hazard to animals and people engaged in outdoor activities. Such flying insects can be prevalent in rural settings and even in very well-developed residential areas. Various species of insects, flying and otherwise, are also common in agricultural settings and in other commercial processing venues, including, for example, meat-packing factories, food-processing facilities, and livestock ranches.
Traps for flying insects are known in the art and often have been quite successful at trapping target insects. For example, an inventor of the insect trap disclosed herein pioneered conical element hanging traps, such as the wasp traps described and claimed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,551,941, which issued on Nov. 12, 1985, to Schneidmiller, and which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. Schneidmiller discloses a transparent, cylindrical insect trap that is selective to entrapping wasps. A “wasp” is a generic name applied to insects of the order Hymenoptera, which includes particularly paper wasps, hornets, and yellow jackets. The present inventor also discloses certain improvements to the insect trap in U.S. Pat. No. 5,557,880, also incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
Previously patented trap structures include a transparent, generally cylindrical entrapment chamber that is open at the bottom, and a base that attaches to the bottom of the entrapment chamber, and defines one or more entryways for the target insect. In the prior art device, the entrapment chamber also includes ventilation openings at the top end of the cylindrical entrapment chamber. The entryways in the base are apertures that permit and encourage entry into the entrapment chamber by wasps. An entry cone shaped as a truncated cone or tapered guide is disposed in the entrapment chamber. The tapered guide is open at the bottom, which is directly adjacent to the perimeter at the bottom of the entrapment chamber, and includes a smaller open aperture at the top end of the tapered guide. Wasps or other target insects enter the trap through the entryways and fly or climb into the cone, passing through the smaller aperture in its truncated upper end. The target insect thereby becomes entrapped in the cylindrical chamber. Once the target insect is inside the chamber, exiting is highly improbable.
Semiochemical is a generic term to describe chemicals or chemical mixtures that carry messages within or between species of organisms, including, for example, insects. It is believed that most, if not all, insects use semiochemicals to communicate with other individuals of the same species or other species. Examples of semiochemicals include pheromones, allomones, kairomones, synomones, attractants, and repellants. The present application discusses the use of attractants in insect traps, for ease in understanding the disclosure. “Attractant” is herein specifically defined to encompass any semiochemical, and is not intended to be restricted to attractants per se.
Insect traps may utilize one or more attractants to lure target insects into the trap. The attractant may be as simple as water, or may be a chemical attractant that is targeted to a particular species. For example, the attractant may be an olfactory attractant for the target insect. In one embodiment, the attractant is a volatile attractant formed into a solid with a polyurethane matrix such that the attractant will evaporate and escape from the matrix over a period of time. The attractant may combine water with a volatile olfactory attractant, wherein the volatile olfactory attractant mixes with vapors from a chemical attractant and/or water in a separate container, the mixed vapors exiting the trap in a plume. An effective attractant plume will attract the target insects toward the trap, and in particular toward the trap entryway. Various attractants or combination of attractants may be used, including both solid and liquid attractants, providing great flexibility in selecting from a range and combination of attractants.
Attractants for luring target insects to the trap are consumable product that must be periodically replenished. Generally, the attractant is formulated to diffuse or evaporate over time such that an attractant plume is generated from the trap for a relatively long period of time. The attractant will, however, eventually be depleted. In prior art traps, replenishing the attractant can be inconvenient. Typically the user must at least partially disassemble the trap, opening the entrapment chamber. This may be inconvenient in the field, particularly if weather conditions are cold and/or rainy. Moreover, when opening the entrapment chamber there is a possibility of releasing one or more target insects that may have only recently become entrapped. The target insect may sting, bite, or otherwise attack the user. The inconvenience associated with changing or replenishing the attractant may cause users to delay replacement of the attractant, and thereby reduce the effectiveness of the trap.
It will also be appreciated that there may be reasons to change or replenish an attractant for reasons other than depletion of the existing attractant. For example, the user may desire to use an alternative attractant, for example, to target a different insect, or an alternative attractant may be desirable due to insect behavioral characteristics. For example, different attractants may be desirable in different temperatures, weather conditions, or the like. It may also be beneficial to combine different attractants in a single trap, and to be able to conveniently change the particular combination of semiochemicals in the trap. For example, if a trap is found to be entrapping an unintended species of insect, in addition to the target species, it may be desirable to add a repellant for the unintended species, while continuing use of the attractant for the target species. Therefore, there is a need for a more convenient mechanism for changing or replacing insect attractant in a trap.